Powered instruments are often used in surgical procedures, and especially in orthopedic procedures. For instance, such instruments are often used to perform operations on a bone of the patient. Examples of such operations including drilling, sawing, grinding, or the like. The objectives of such operations are many and may, for example, include for inserting an orthopedic appliance, shaping a bone, or other appropriate operations. As may be appreciated, powered tools may assist a surgeon in performing a surgical operation by speeding such operations. Improving the speed at which operations may occur may be beneficial to limit the duration of anesthesia for the patient and/or may assist in avoiding other complications.
Despite the assistance that powered tools may provide, control of such instruments may be more difficult than hand-powered tools. In turn, unintended contact of the instrument with surrounding tissue (e.g., soft tissue surrounding the bone on which the operation is to occur) may cause damage to such surrounding tissue. In turn, reducing the risk of such unintended contact of the instrument with tissue may assist in improving surgical outcomes.